Latest news with #meteor
Yahoo
20-07-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
A meteor may have led to the formation of the Grand Canyon, new study says
A meteor may have led to the formation of the Grand Canyon, a new study has found. While many Americans are familiar with the Grand Canyon's beauty and uniqueness, they may not be aware of the story behind its formation. The Colorado River may have etched the canyon one mile deep, as rocky debris transported in floods did most of the carving, according to the Grand Canyon Conservancy. But what caused the flooding? A study published in Geology on Tuesday tied another Arizona landmark, the Meteor Crater, to the formation of the Grand Canyon. A meteor may have led to the formation of the Grand Canyon, a new study has found (Daniel Slim/AFP via Getty Images) The study hypothesized the Meteor Crater, which was formed 56,000 years ago, triggered landslides in the Grand Canyon that blocked the Colorado River and formed a paleolake — a lake that has existed in the past— in the canyon. Geologists have long wondered how and when driftwood found in Stanton's Cave in the Grand Canyon got there, as the mouth of the cave is 150 feet above the river. There are also lake sediments found in the cave. "It would have required a 10-times bigger flood level than any flood that has happened in the past several thousand years,' one of the study's authors, University of New Mexico Distinguished Professor Emeritus Karl Karlstrom, said in a press release Tuesday. He continued: 'Or maybe they are very old deposits left as the river carved down, or maybe they floated in from a paleolake caused by a downstream lava dam or landslide dam? We needed to know the age of the cave deposits.' A study published Tuesday tied the Meteor Crater to the formation of the Grand Canyon (Daniel Slim/AFP via Getty Images) The study hypothesized the Meteor Crater, which was formed 56,000 years ago, triggered landslides in the Grand Canyon that blocked the Colorado River and formed a paleolake, in other words, a former lake, in the canyon () The study found the driftwood to be 56,000 years old, the same geologic age as the asteroid impact and the landslide dam. Researchers suggested because the landslide appears to have the same age as Meteor Crater, the asteroid impact blast caused the landslide. The paleolake formed from the landslide, which dammed the Colorado River. Caves, such as Stanton's Cave, were flooded by the paleolake.
Yahoo
20-07-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Meteor strike may have triggered a landslide in the Grand Canyon some 56,000 years ago
GRAND CANYON, Ariz. - Two landmarks in the Desert Southwest may share a historic connection, unveiled in a study published in the journal Geology. Researchers led by a team at the University of New Mexico suggest that a large meteor triggered a massive landslide in the nearby Grand Canyon, blocking the Colorado River and forming a 50-mile-long lake. Evidence comes from decades of investigative work involving driftwood and lake sediments found in caves high above the river in the Grand Canyon. So how did decaying wood make it to at least 150 feet above the surface of the water? "It would have required a ten-times bigger flood level than any flood that has happened in the past several thousand years," Karl Karlstrom, the study's co-author, stated. "Or maybe they are very old deposits left as the river carved down, or maybe they floated in from a paleolake caused by a downstream lava dam or landslide dam." Original carbon dating performed in the 1960s estimated that the wood was at least 35,000 years old, but modern technology provided a more precise estimate of around 55,600 years - a time period that matches a meteor strike estimated to have occurred between 53,000 and 63,000 years ago. Prolonged Heat Waves At National Parks Could Pose Serious Risks To Visitors The study suggests that after the meteor collision, a shock wave, resembling at least a magnitude-5.4 earthquake, loosened rocks and cliffs, creating a landslide that effectively acted as a dam for the Colorado River, which then formed a lake. Based on aquatic sediments tested, researchers estimated the lake would have stretched about 50 miles and reached depths of at least 300 feet. "The team put together these arguments without claiming we have final proof; there are other possibilities, such as a random rockfall or local earthquake within a thousand years of the Meteor Crater impact that could have happened independently," Karlstrom explained. "Nevertheless, the meteorite impact, the massive landslide, the lake deposits, and the driftwood high above river level are all rare and unusual occurrences. The mean of dates from them converge into a narrow window of time at 55,600 ± 1,300 years ago which gives credence to the hypothesis that they were causally related." Over time, the dam that once blocked the Colorado River is thought to have eroded, and the massive lake has since dried up and filled with debris. Nearly 300 Queen Conchs Found After Illegal Harvest In Florida Keys Experts with the Lunar and Planetary Institute estimated that the size of the asteroid was likely in the ballpark of 100 to 170 feet across, which is large enough to destroy a community the size of Kansas City. Researchers did not state whether other nearby rockfalls may be attributed to the meteor strike or whether they happened overtime through a more natural Earth-based article source: Meteor strike may have triggered a landslide in the Grand Canyon some 56,000 years ago Solve the daily Crossword
Yahoo
18-07-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Giant meteor impact may have triggered massive Grand Canyon landslide 56,000 years ago
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. The ancient meteor impact that formed Arizona's Barringer Crater sent shock waves through the Grand Canyon — likely triggering a landslide that dammed the Colorado River, a new study suggests. Barringer Crater, also called Meteor Crater, formed between 53,000 and 63,000 years ago, when a giant cosmic "curveball" punched a hole in Earth's surface. The force of the impact traveled more than 100 miles (160 kilometers) to the Grand Canyon, which may have caused an entire cliff face to collapse into the river, scientists have found. The discovery, described July 15 in the journal Geology, has linked two major events that were thought to be completely unrelated. "There are other possibilities, such as a random rockfall or local earthquake within a thousand years of the Meteor Crater impact that could have happened independently," Karl Karlstrom, a professor of Earth and planetary sciences at the University of New Mexico and lead author of the study, said in a statement. But the events described are extraordinary, Karlstrom said — and they happened within a suspiciously small time frame, suggesting that they were related. Related: Grand Canyon Dragon wildfire burns down historic lodge and triggers toxic gas leak Researchers already knew that the Colorado River flooded the Grand Canyon sometime in the Late Pleistocene (129,000 to 11,700 years ago). They determined this by analyzing animal figurines carved out of driftwood, which Karlstom's father and colleagues unearthed in a cavern called Stanton's Cave in the 1960s, according to the statement. With techniques available at the time, the researchers dated the driftwood and found it was more than 35,000 years old. (The figurines themselves were carved between 3,000 and 4,000 years ago.) Stanton's Cave sits 150 feet (46 meters) above river level, so the water must have risen to deposit driftwood there — but the reason remained unknown. "It would have required a ten-times bigger flood level than any flood that has happened in the past several thousand years," Karlstrom said. "Rare and unusual occurrences" Subsequent analyses using more advanced techniques suggested the driftwood was 43,500 years old, and the new study pushed the date back even further, to 56,000 years ago. Dating the driftwood was a crucial step in figuring out how it got to Stanton's Cave in the first place, Karlstrom said. But the researchers needed more evidence to complete the puzzle, so they searched similar caves in the area. "From numerous research trips, Karl and I knew of other high-accessible caves that had both driftwood and sediment that could be dated," study co-author Laura Crossey, also a professor of Earth and planetary sciences at the University of New Mexico, said in the statement. Several labs examined the additional driftwood samples, and all came back with dates consistent with a flooding event 56,000 years ago. The locations of the caves pointed to this event being a landslide near Nankoweap Canyon, which is downstream of Stanton's Cave. The landslide may have been so big that it created a dam on the Colorado River, forming a lake that stretched for miles upstream. As a result, water levels may have risen high enough to deposit driftwood in the caves, according to the statement. Around the same time as these results appeared, study co-author David Kring, principal scientist at the Lunar and Planetary Institute in Houston, was recalculating the age of the Barringer Crater. Kring's work showed that the meteor impact occurred around 56,000 years ago, according to the statement. RELATED STORIES —North America is 'dripping' down into Earth's mantle, scientists discover —Hells Canyon caves reveal unexpected finding about America's deepest gorge —There's a massive fault hidden under America's highest mountain — and we finally know how it formed Kring had previously calculated that the Barringer meteor impact unleashed a magnitude 5.4 earthquake, and when the researchers came together to work on the new study, he determined that the residual effect at the Grand Canyon would have been the same as a 3.5 magnitude earthquake. This could have been enough to disintegrate a cliff face, according to the statement. "The team put together these arguments without claiming we have final proof," Karlstrom said. "Nevertheless, the meteorite impact, the massive landslide, the lake deposits, and the driftwood high above river level are all rare and unusual occurrences." With dates that all converge around 56,000 years ago, it seems credible for the events to be related, he said. Solve the daily Crossword
The Independent
15-07-2025
- Science
- The Independent
New study may have found how the Grand Canyon was formed
A new study suggests a meteor impact may have contributed to the formation of the Grand Canyon. Published in Geology, the research links Arizona's Meteor Crater, formed 56,000 years ago, to the canyon's development. The study hypothesises that the meteor impact triggered landslides that blocked the Colorado River, creating a paleolake within the canyon. This theory explains the presence of 56,000-year-old driftwood and lake sediments found in Stanton's Cave, located 150 feet above the river. The age of the driftwood matches the geologic age of the asteroid impact and the proposed landslide dam, supporting the connection.
The Independent
15-07-2025
- Science
- The Independent
A meteor may have led to the formation of the Grand Canyon, new study says
A meteor may have led to the formation of the Grand Canyon, a new study has found. While many Americans are familiar with the Grand Canyon's beauty and uniqueness, they may not be aware of the story behind its formation. The Colorado River may have etched the canyon one mile deep, as rocky debris transported in floods did most of the carving, according to the Grand Canyon Conservancy. But what caused the flooding? A study published in Geology on Tuesday tied another Arizona landmark, the Meteor Crater, to the formation of the Grand Canyon. The study hypothesized the Meteor Crater, which was formed 56,000 years ago, triggered landslides in the Grand Canyon that blocked the Colorado River and formed a paleolake — a lake that has existed in the past— in the canyon. Geologists have long wondered how and when driftwood found in Stanton's Cave in the Grand Canyon got there, as the mouth of the cave is 150 feet above the river. There are also lake sediments found in the cave. "It would have required a 10-times bigger flood level than any flood that has happened in the past several thousand years,' one of the study's authors, University of New Mexico Distinguished Professor Emeritus Karl Karlstrom, said in a press release Tuesday. He continued: 'Or maybe they are very old deposits left as the river carved down, or maybe they floated in from a paleolake caused by a downstream lava dam or landslide dam? We needed to know the age of the cave deposits.' The study found the driftwood to be 56,000 years old, the same geologic age as the asteroid impact and the landslide dam. Researchers suggested because the landslide appears to have the same age as Meteor Crater, the asteroid impact blast caused the landslide. The paleolake formed from the landslide, which dammed the Colorado River. Caves, such as Stanton's Cave, were flooded by the paleolake.
